Curried Lentils and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad

April 10, 2017

Try this easy Curried Lentils and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad for your next weekday meal! It’s so easy to prepare and the colorful salad is packed with health benefits! Want to know the best part? It’s pretty diet friendly! The lentils provide important proteins, fibers, and important nutrients to keep you full and nourished all day! This vegan, gluten-free, and dairy free salad will make even the most difficult eaters happy!

I am not a salad person. I don’t really like lettuce, dressing, or the bland flavors that you think of when someone says “salad”. But, I do really like how quick and easy it is to throw together a salad. This curried lentil and roasted butternut squash isn’t as difficult to prepare as you would think! You can prep the lentils and roast the squash on the weekend and just assemble during a busy week!

Some cooking ideas:

Don’t add salt to lentils until after they are cooked. Doing so during the cooking process can toughen them up.

I used olive oil for this recipe to cover the vegan diet. If you’re not vegan, try using ghee instead of olive oil. It will enhance the flavors.

Play around with the greens! I used spinach because that is what I had available, but this salad would be delicious with kale, collards, or even chard!

Curried Lentils and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad

Try this easy Curried Lentils and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad for your next weekday meal! It’s so easy to prepare and the colorful salad is packed with health benefits! Want to know the best part? It’s pretty diet friendly! This vegan, gluten-free, and dairy free salad will make even the most difficult eaters happy!

1 cup yellow lentils (rinsed thoroughly)

2 cup water

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 small onion

1 small clove garlic (crushed)

1 cup butternut squash (cubed)

1 cup baby spinach

1/4 cup red cabbage (shredded)

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp tsp cinnamon

*1 tsp salt (*season to taste)

1/8 lime (or one small lime wedge)

cilantro (optional garnish)

Heat 2 cups of water in a sauce pan until boiling.

Add in lentils.

Simmer 25-30 minutes until lentils are cooked through.

While the lentils simmer, roast the butternut squash. You can roast the squash in an oven or in a pan.

Pan: Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add in squash cubes and sautée cubes over medium heat until cooked through.

Oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange the cubes on the tray evenly. Pour 1 tbsp of oil on top. Roast 10 minutes. Stir or gently flip the cubes over and roast for another 10 minutes or until cooked through. Keep an eye on the squash, depending on the size of the cubes, they may require more or less time to cook through.